Bomb blast in Delhi-bound Shramjeevi Express kills 10
HT Correspondents
Lucknow/Jaunpur, July 28, 2005
A powerful blast ripped through a general coach of the moving Shramjeevi Express near Singramau railway station, some 40 km from Sultanpur, killing at least 10 people on the spot and injuring over 50 on Thursday. The explosion took place around 5.20 pm.
The Delhi-bound train from Patna was on its way to Lucknow. The blast, near the toilet, was so powerful that the bodies were blown into pieces. The dead included a young girl.
Investigating officers are not yet clear whether a time device or any other method was used to trigger the explosion. A team of explosive experts from Agra has been rushed to the site. The intensity of the blast indicates that it was a terrorist act, said senior officials. The bomb was kept in a bag near the toilet, they said. Minister of State for Railways Narain Bhai Rathwa too said the terrorist angle could not be ruled out.
Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav said in Patna that investigations had begun to ascertain the nature of the explosion. He did not rule out the possibility of a gas cylinder explosion either.
As a result of the explosion, the second coach from the engine was blown off, while another was partially damaged. The police have cordoned off the entire area.
“There were many people seated on the entrance of the ill-fated coach. Therefore, the toll would not be less than 20,” said an eyewitness, Ram Balak. Another eyewitness said the impact of the explosion was such that several passengers were thrown in the air.
The Lucknow division of the Northern Railways has rushed an accident relief train to the spot. The train, according to the villagers, reached the spot almost two hours after the blast. The villagers helped the blast victims reach hospitals by private vehicles.
PTI quoted DGP Yashpal Singh as saying that 80 persons have been injured, 20 of them seriously. Those injured seriously have been taken to a Jaunpur hospital while the others have been admitted to public health centres at Badlapur. Some have been rushed to the BHU hospital.
The GRP and the civil police got the passengers removed from the coaches and sent them in batches to Sultanpur for their onward journey.
UP Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav announced an ex-gratia of Rs 1 lakh to the relatives of the dead, Rs 50,000 to the seriously injured and Rs 25,000 for those with minor injuries.
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